Insecurity: MURIC Urges Yoruba Youths To Join Fight Against Bandits In South-West

The Muslim Rights Concern has called on Yoruba youths, irrespective of religious affiliation, to join community-based security outfits and support ongoing efforts to combat banditry and terrorism in the South-West.

The call followed allegations in some quarters that Muslims and Muslim organisations were responsible for inviting bandits and Boko Haram elements into the region.

In a statement issued on Sunday, the Executive Director of MURIC, Ishaq Akintola, urged Yoruba Muslims and Christians to unite and support security groups such as the Oduduwa People’s Congress (OPC), Amotekun Corps and Iru Ekun in defending the region against criminal elements.

According to Akintola, the security challenge confronting the South-West requires collective action rather than religious division.

“Bandit war is here, Boko Haram war is also here. We will not flee from Boko Haram. We will do this together,” he said.

Drawing parallels with historic Yoruba resistance against external threats, Akintola said the region had a legacy of courage and resilience.

“Our forefathers were gallant in the Battle of Ogele (1825), valiant in Mugbamugba War (1824-1825), uncompromising in Eleduwe War (1830), and roaring lions in the decisive Battle of Osogbo (1840). We will defend our land. We will never run away. We mean every word here.”

The MURIC leader accused what he described as some “Yoruba Christian elements” of orchestrating a campaign of misinformation against Yoruba Muslims and Muslim organisations, particularly MURIC, by alleging that they were facilitating the infiltration of terrorists into the South-West.

He said the group had obtained a social media post alleging that MURIC had radicalised Islamic clerics in the region and encouraged them to invite terrorists.

“We are in possession of a satanic tweet in which the author alleged that MURIC had radicalized Islamic clerics in the South West and those clerics are inviting terrorists to the region,” he said.

Akintola dismissed the allegations as false and illogical, arguing that terrorist groups do not discriminate between Muslims and Christians and have historically targeted adherents of both faiths.

“How can MURIC or any Yoruba Muslim group invite Boko Haram or bandits to Yorubaland when we all know that those criminals do not differentiate on the basis of religion? They kill more Muslims than Christians. They attack mosques and churches,” he stated.

The organisation maintained that it has consistently condemned terrorism and violent extremism over the years, citing several public statements denouncing Boko Haram attacks and other terrorist activities across the country.

Akintola said MURIC had condemned Boko Haram’s ideology as far back as 2014, criticised attacks on churches and communities, urged Muslim youths to avoid extremist groups and commended security agencies for successes recorded against terrorists.

He stressed that MURIC’s guiding principle remains “Dialogue, Not Violence,” adding that the organisation is driven by intellectual engagement and peaceful advocacy.

“We detest violence. We oppose killings, kidnappings and all forms of criminality. Our motto, ‘Dialogue, Not Violence,’ stands us out,” he said.

The group urged all residents of the South-West to unite against insecurity rather than allow religious divisions to weaken collective resistance against bandits and terrorists.

“A divided house can never stand. United we stand, divided we fall. Nobody should politicise banditry. This is not about religion. We must fight for our land, our freedom, our children, our wives and our mothers,” the statement said.

MURIC further appealed to citizens to support law enforcement agencies in confronting insecurity, insisting that terrorists and bandits must not be allowed to intimidate communities across the region.

“The Yoruba must not run from bandits. They are criminals and we will speak to them in the only language they understand. We will stop them,” Akintola said.

The organisation expressed confidence that attempts to associate Yoruba Muslims and MURIC with terrorism would fail, insisting that its record of advocacy against extremism and violence remains well documented.